Dhamaka owner makes off with Tk 45cr

Jashim Uddin Chishty, managing director of controversial e-commerce company Dhamaka Shopping, has misappropriated more than Tk 45.47 crore from the company, according to a probe of the Bangladesh Bank.

The investigation found that Chishty took away Tk 24.63 crore from the company in the name of disbursing loans to other companies, Tk 20 crore in the name of software purchase, and Tk 0.84 crore in advance.

Dhamaka Shopping, an e-commerce business of Invariant Telecom Bangladesh Ltd, a concern of Microtrade Group, is one of the e-commerce firms in Bangladesh that have failed to deliver goods to customers despite receiving advanced payments months ago.

According to the BB probe, the company received Tk 705.52 crore from customers in advance and delivered goods worth Tk 402.52 crore to them. It failed to hand over goods worth Tk 303 crore.

Merchants submitted bills worth Tk 724.57 crore to Dhamaka against delivery of goods to customers. But, Dhamaka paid Tk 557.75 crore to the merchants, meaning the online firm still owes Tk 167.49 crore to the suppliers, the BB report also said.

As a result, Dhamaka Shopping owes a total of Tk 470.49 crore to merchants and customers. The BB submitted its investigation report to the commerce ministry on Sunday.

Speaking to The Daily Star, AHM Shafiquzzaman, additional secretary of the commerce ministry and chief of the Digital Commerce Cell, said the ministry would review the report soon in order to determine its next course of action.

"The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) may find whether the money was laundered or not by Dhamaka Shopping," he said.

In September last year, the CID filed a Tk 116.68 crore money laundering case against the company with Banani police station.

The money laundering case is under investigation, said Humayun Kabir, special superintendent of the financial crime unit of the CID.

Chishty and his family members have been absconding since July last year.

In September last year, the Rapid Action Battalion arrested Sirajul Islam Rana, chief operating officer of Dhamaka Shopping, Imtiaz Hasan Shobuj, head of the mobile fashion lifestyle category, and Ibrahim Shwapon, head of the electronics category.

CID investigators found that Invariant Telecom took permission from the Office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms on February 25, 2015 for importing and exporting software, telecom systems, smartphones, IP phones and internet services equipment.

In October 2020, the company launched Dhamaka Shopping without any approval. Business activities of the platform are currently closed.

In a post on its Facebook page on December 26, Dhamaka Shopping said it would be fully operational as soon as the new government policy is released.

A central banker, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Daily Star that those who were involved in selling motorcycles only in papers should be brought under the law.

"The beneficiaries should also be brought to justice because they have benefited a lot as well. If they face trial, it will be lot easier to uncover the truth," he said.

Dhamaka Shopping had more than two lakh registered customers, and about 11,000 vendors used to supply goods to the company, according to the BB.

The platform claimed it used to sell mobile phones, TVs, laptops, computers, refrigerators, motorcycles, groceries, watches, sunglasses, household goods, furniture and many other products before its operation is suspended.